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Schroder European Real Estate Investment Trust PLC on Friday warned of risk of maintaining its dividend following the departure of a key tenant in its Apeldoorn property in the Netherlands. The London and Johannesburg-listed property investor multiplied its pretax profit to €4.1 million for the financial year that ended September 30, from €1.3 million a year before. Net rental and related income was up 7.8% to €13.9 million from R 15.0 million. Following unrealised revaluation losses, net asset value per share fell 2.9% to 119.2 euro cents from 122.7 cents at September 30, 2024, and was down 0.7% from 120.1 cents at March 31, 2025. Schroder European declared a fourth interim dividend of 1.48 cents, bringing the total payout for the 2025 financial year to 5.92 cents, remaining flat. Basic earnings per share more than doubled to 1.7 cents from 0.4 cents. Schroder European warned that there is a risk to sustaining the level of dividends arising from the departure of the tenant Dutch telecommunications company Koninklijke KPN NV at Apeldoorn in December 2026. ‘Addressing Apeldoorn is an immediate priority to help limit the potential impact on future dividends,’ said Jeff O’Dwyer, fund manager for Schroder Real Estate Investment Management Ltd. The property group also said it has decided not to make a provision for its tax dispute after receiving a notice of adjustment from the French Tax Authority amounting to €14.2 million. ‘The group maintains its position that this amount is not payable and has formally appealed the decision,’ it said. Schroder European Chair Julian Berney said there are some encouraging signs that liquidity within the European real estate market is improving. In London, shares in Schroder European were down 2.7% to 61.50 pence, but they were flat at R 14.63 in Johannesburg. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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